Distributed by IFC Films, Camp is an
independent low budget movie starring a
pack of unknown actors, along with a
first-time writer/director. Despite the
amateur status the project obtains on
paper, Camp rises above mediocrity to
become a film with well-built characters,
actors who’ve defined the roles, and a
script that even allows the clichés to
feel fresh, with enough laughs and heart
to fulfill a night.The film surrounds
young and talented singers/musicians who
go off and away to Camp Ovation, a resort
that’ll propel adolescents onto the stage
and give them experience in front of an
audience. The camp counselor, Bert Hanley
– a one-time hit play-writer, is a drunk
and pessimistic figure, thus placing
tension between he and his fellow
adolescent members.
The way the film unfolds is much in the
same style as venturing off to a camp
itself – we get to watch young kids take
the bus ride in to the resort, getting to
know them little by little, and once
arrived we spend nearly every scene with
various members. Part of what makes the
film a beauty is the realistic perspective
writer/director Todd Graff supplies, as
the student-to-student encounters take on
a very natural and believable form, with
some members creating friendships while
others create hostile environments with
other students.
From the beginning stages of the film,
we as the audience are pretty well aware
of what kids we’ll be rooting for (or at
least admiring) and which kids we’ll wish
to see jump off a cliff at the finale.
This device, while a bit cliché, is
effective, as our attachment will
gradually grow with some kids while our
hatred or annoyance will strengthen with others; for
the story, these are the precise emotions
needed.
Camp doesn’t follow an official
premise, as much of the film revolves
around the daily practices of the musicals
and the relationships that form between
student members. For a nearly two-hour
film, this is a risky minimalist
production but it thankfully takes use of
the utensils at hand. The script is not
written as family-friendly in nature as it
could have been, as there are indeed cute
devices thrown in but the film does take
riskier and bolder moves in comedy,
satisfying those in the audience not in
the mood for purely expected cutesy
touches.
The issues raised in the film are not
that original, but are handled quite well and
better than the average identity clichés filmmakers
often bring to the screen. It’s a part
social commentary and part coming-of-age
tale that discusses matters we’ve seen
tackled previously, yet the intelligent
execution brings on a very welcoming
sensation.
Camp doesn’t make the audience want to
clap or cheer in favor of the musicals
like School of Rock (B) accomplishes, but
here, it’s more about the connection
between the viewer and the character than
the viewer and the music. Camp doesn’t
necessarily showcase the music as much as
Rock does, as most of the time we are (in
a sense) socializing with the kids and
getting to know who they are, enjoying
their presence in the process (or at least some of them).
Much of the humor comes from the
natural behavior of the students, with
bits and pieces from the camp staff
themselves. There’s a touch of the
Meatballs (B-) attitude thrown in, but
Camp’s tone doesn't bring itself to as
goofball of a level. The film is somewhat
serious in its matters, but never too
serious, as Graff allows an adequate
amount of humor to flow, with a few gags forcing
me to control my laughter.
Camp shows some constraint in material
with its low budget, but nevertheless
works as a successful crowd pleaser
that’ll likely please several
demographics. I, for one, am not always
kind to certain movies that attempt to win
over everyone at all costs, but Camp plays
its strings correctly, never crossing the
limit in the cute territory and allowing
some of its more serious topics to be
handled with brains rather than
sentimentality.
Like a good comedy, its hope is to
please those in the audience with a sense
of humor regardless of age; it succeeds in
that field, and after the movie is over
you might even want to see these people
back for the next camp.